By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow : A Russian court has convicted an employee at a defence firm for passing on secrets about latest Russian weapons to a foreign intelligence service, and sentenced him to eight years in prison.
Sverdlovsk regional court handed down the sentence to the Russian national Friday.
The Kommersant daily reported that these secrets concern the guidance and control systems of the Bulava intercontinental missile.
“Sverdlovsk regional court declared the sentence of Alexander Gniteev, who was convicted of treason and felony. The court sentenced him to eight years in a maximum security penal colony,” the statement reported.
The Bulava (SS-NX-30) SLBM, developed by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology (since 1998), carries up to 10 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle (MIRV) warheads; a collection of nuclear weapons, and has a range of over 8,000 km (5,000 miles).
The three-stage ballistic missile is designed for deployment on Borey-class nuclear submarines.
The court fined Gniteev 100,000 rubles (over $3,000). He will also face stringent travel restrictions after serving the sentence. The verdict has not yet entered into force and may be appealed.